The Pride (Book)
Prologue Nip pressed closer to Mother-Dog as a roll of thunder shook the floor of the abandoned longpaw den where they were sheltering. "It's all right, young one," whispered Mother-Dog. "It's just a Sky-Dog fight." "But what if the rain floods the den?" Nip questioned. "It won't," Mother-Dog assured her, though her voice was edged with doubt. Fidget, Nip's brother, yelped with fear. "When will they stop fightning?" he whined. "Soon," promised Mother-Dog. "You can hear the thunder, can't you?" Nip and Fidget nodded. "Well, that's the Sun-Dog growling his displeasure. He'll make them stop soon, little ones." Nip sighed. She knew what the thunder was. But why did the Sun-Dog have to growl so loud? '' Her sister, Whimper, stayed silent, clinging tightly to Mother-Dog. She was shaking violently and kept her eyes closed. Mother-Dog bent over to lick her soothingly, and the tiny pup whined softly. All of the pups; Nip, Fidget, Whimper, Nudge, and Sniff, pressed close together in a heap of soft, warm fur. Mother-Dog curled around them all, keeping them close. Nip was cozy and snug, and was glad they had this longpaw den that gave them shelter while the Sky-Dogs raged above her head. ''Plop. A fat raindrop leaked through the crumbling roof and splattered on her nose. Nip blinked in surprise, tilting her head upward. Several more drops were finding their way in, and Mother-Dog gave a small, worried growl. Whimper made no sound, but pressed deeper into Mother-Dog's fur as another drop landed beside her. "When will it stop?" inquired Sniff, the most curious of the five pups. Nip saw no trace of fear in his eyes, only wonder, unlike Whimper, who, though silent, her gaze was wild with terror whenever she ceased burying her head in Mother-Dog's coat to glance at the dripping roof. Mother-Dog licked his head swiftly, smoothing any loose strands of fur. "The Sun-Dog won't allow them to continue for very long, my bold pup." Just then, Lightning leaped to the ground, taunting the Earth-Dog. Nip remembered Mother-Dog's stories. The Sun Dog won't be very pleased with Light- Suddenly, a booming, crashing, intensely loud roar rang in Nip's ears, interrupting her thoughts. The Sun-Dog is ''furious! Nip thought. ''Stop, Lightning, please stop! ''she begged silently. "Why does Lightning tease Earth-Dog?" Sniff asked Mother-Dog. To Nip's surprise, he didn't even seem nervous, and sounded merely annoyed. "Lightning teases her because of what she did him. You remember the story, don't you? She opened up the ground and tried to swallow him up, for Lightning had lived for so long, and she believed it was time for her to take him. But the Sky-Dogs saved him, and brought him up with them. He still teases her though, to this day," Mother-Dog reminded him, managing to finish speaking before another deafening growl of thunder sounded. "I don't think that's right. The Sky-Dogs and Lightning should have accepted that it was Lightning's time," Sniff grunted. Nip was surprised. Didn't he think that it was mean of Earth-Dog to try and take Lightning? Mother-Dog nuzzled him fondly. "You are quite understanding and fair to Earth-Dog, Sniff. Hopefully she might appreciate your support and help you out of trouble some day, as the Sky-Dogs did to Lightning." Fidget squirmed beside Nip. "I don't care about what Lightning is doing to Earth-Dog, or what the Sun-Dog thinks about it!" he yapped in his whiny voice. Mother-Dog looked appalled. "Why, Fidget! Don't be that disrespectful!" she scolded, giving him a light cuff with her paw that caught him on the ear. "That is ''not how I brought you up!" Nudge nibbled Fidget's ear. "Yeah, Fidget! Stop being mean to the Spirit-Dogs!" she yelped. With her reddish-orange and white coat, she stood out from the rest of the litter and Mother-Dog; Mother-Dog, Nip, and Fidget were black and white, Sniff dark brown and white. As more thunder crashed, sounding as if the Sun-Dog were growling right above their heads, Nip couldn't take it anymore. "Mother-Dog, tell us a story!" she pleaded. "All right." agreed Mother-Dog. "Let's see . . . . would you like me to tell you the story of your Sire-Dog?" she inquired. "Yes, Mother-Dog, yes!" the pups yipped. "Okay. Here it is." Mother-Dog took a deep breath and began. "I met your Sire-Dog when I was hunting in the woods during Red-Leaf, far from any longpaw strutures and hardstone paths. Forest-Dog must have been feeling generous, because a rabbit practically hopped straight into my mouth. After I buried a portion for Earth-Dog, I was settling down to eat when a squirrel caught my eye. It was fat and sleepy, as all Red-Leaf squirrels are. I was chasing when it abruptly turned around, right into my paws. I killed it with a blow to the spine, and as I was wondering why it had turned, I saw exactly why. He was standing not too far away from me, and his coat; just like yours, Nudge-" Here Nudge yipped happily, and Mother-Dog gave her a kind glance before continuing. "His coat blended in perfectly with the orange and scaret leaves, white patches resembling early snow or frost. The squirrel must have spotted him, and that must have been why it had jumped right into my range. I told him that I wasn't looking for a fight, that he was welcome to the prey. But he didn't seem interested in the squirrel. He watched me, appearing only slightly wary. "I crouched down and slowly backed away. I thought he was going to attack me But then I realized his tail was wagging in a friendly way, and his tongue lolled nonthreateningly. So I asked him if he wanted the squirrel again. And he still did not answer. Finally, he spoke. He told me that I could have the squirrel- if I agreed to meet him in that very part of the forest the next day." Mother-Dog's dark eyes were shining with the memory. She didn't continue the story. Desperate to hear more, Nip nudged her. "Tell us the rest!" she begged. "I ''don't want to hear the rest," announced Fidget. "It's stupid." His lip curled. "''Watch your muzzle, young pup!" snapped Mother-Dog. She took another deep breath and went on. "So I met him the next day. We told each other about ourselves, shared prey, hunted together, everything. And the next day, we did the same. And the next. He explained to me that he was a Pack-Dog, so he could never stay long," Mother-Dog recalled. "He was a Pack-Dog?" asked Nip. She knew Pack-Dogs all lived together in one big Pack. Nip wasn't sure she'd like that. Her Pup Pack was hard enough to handle. Then again...I do like being with my littermates, even if they can be annoying sometimes. '' ''"''Yes, he was. A Hunter. He caught prey for his Pack. And for me. I hunted for him, too. We made a great team." Her eyes clouded slightly. "But then, one day, he never came. I waited and waited. He didn't come the next day, either. Or the next. Or the next. Finally I gathered the courage to seek out his Pack and ask them what had become of him. They told me he was dead." Mother-Dog sighed. "I still grieve for him, but I know that his body fed Earth-Dog, and his spirit has become part of everything." "How can his spirit become part of everything?" inquired Sniff. Mother-Dog gave an amused bark. "Another time, Sniff." Thunder rumbled faintly in the distance, and more raindrops leaked through the roof. Whimper began to shake harder than before. Nudge prodded her sister. "It's just the Sun-Dog making the Sky-Dogs stop fighting!" she told Whimper. "Right?" she asked Mother-Dog. "Yes, little one." Mother-Dog gave them each a swift lick. Nip yelped as a cold drop of water splashed onto her head, followed by a fericious roar of thunder that chilled her to the marrow of her bones. The Sun-Dog sounded more enraged than ever. She couldn't help feeling, deep down, that his anger was misdirected. The thunder didn't seem to tear through the sky as it had done in other Sky-Dog fights. But if he wasn't angry at the Sky-Dogs- what could be the cause of his fury? Chapter One Spiral's fur was buffeted by the wind as she bounded across the meadow. The Sun-Dog's bright light shone all around her as she ran, paws barely skimming the hard earth. At the corner of her gaze, she could see Frost was coming in on her right side, and on her left she glimpsed Fleet, a blur of chestnut fur. She knew Skip would be lying in wait several rabbit-chases ahead of her, hidden by the tall grass. She gained speed, pursuing the hoofed creature ahead of her. The deer ran faster as well, dark eyes panicked. But Spiral was too quick, and got close enough to snap at the back of its slender hind legs, sharp white teeth snapping shut on fur and flesh. She did her best to slow it down, savaging whatever her jaws locked on. On either side of her, Frost and Fleet started to close in, leaving only one direction for the doe to flee- forward, right into Skip's paws. It soon reached the rotting log that obscured Skip from view, and as it leaped over, Skip pounced from beneath, locking onto its exposed throat, powerful hind paws slashing its underbelly. Blood splashed onto the Hunter's coat, staining the white areas scarlet. Spiral caught the scent of blood, and she eagerly dashed ahead to help Skip finish it off, but there was no need. The deer was dead. It had happened so fast, but they had worked together and the result was food for the Pack. ''A fine catch, Spiral thought proudly, admiring their catch. Fleet joined her, grunting happily, with Frost padding behind him. "Did you catch anything?" a bright voice called. Spiral turned to see the fifth and lowest-ranked Hunter, Pool, on the other side of the meadow. She took something in her jaws and briskly walked over to the other Hunters. As she approached, Spiral noticed her burden was a rabbit, bloody and limp. Lowering it to the ground, something seemed to catch her eye, and Spiral followed her gaze to the deer. "Wow!" she yelped. "Alpha will be pleased! And I've got a couple squirrels back there, but I couldn't carry them along with this," she explained, prodding the rabbit. Before the other Hunters could say anything, she disappeared in the tall grass. They did not have to wait long before she returned, brown eyes sparkling happily, carrying two nice meaty squirrels in her jaws. Good haul today, Spiral thought. More coming soon